YouTube Deletes Latest Trump Video, Suspends Account Through Inauguration Day

YouTube has deleted President Donald Trump’s latest video over concerns that it could inspire violence, the video sharing site announced late Tuesday. Comments are being blocked on all of the president’s remaining videos and his account has been suspended for at least the next seven days. Notably, the inauguration of president-elect Joe Biden is seven days away.

“After review, and in light of concerns about the ongoing potential for violence, we removed new content uploaded to Donald J. Trump’s channel for violating our policies,” YouTube announced on Twitter. “It now has its 1st strike & is temporarily prevented from uploading new content for a *minimum* of 7 days.”

“Given the ongoing concerns about violence, we will also be indefinitely disabling comments on President Trump’s channel, as we’ve done to other channels where there are safety concerns found in the comments section,” YouTube continued.

Trump’s suspension on YouTube follows other major social media platforms banning the president outright, including Twitter and Facebook. The tech companies booted Trump only after he incited a coup attempt at the nation’s Capitol on Jan. 6 that left five people dead, including a Capitol police officer.

The video that was removed from Trump’s account on Tuesday was a clip from C-SPAN showing the president talking to reporters while departing the White House on his way to Texas. The video was being actively dissected in the YouTube comments section by Trump followers who seemed to believe it was a message to commit more violence. The commenters were particularly fixated on Trump’s phrases, “there is always a countermove,” and “our journey is just beginning.”

President Trump refused to take responsibility for the insurrection he incited last week and said Tuesday that a move to impeach him is inspiring more “anger” among his supporters. At least five House Republicans, including Republican Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, have now broken ranks and have said they’ll support impeachment.

Capitol Police warned House Democrats on Monday there are at least three worst-case scenarios they’re planning for in the coming days leading up to Joe Biden’s inauguration, including one plan to encircle the White House to “protect” Trump. Other plans reportedly include a plot to assassinate Democratic members of Congress as well as any Republicans who don’t support the president, according to HuffPost.

Disturbingly, it appears at least three Republican members of Congress were intimately involved in plans to descend on the Capitol, according to reporting from the Intercept, including Rep. Andrew Biggs of Arizona, Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona, and Rep. Mo Brooks of Alabama.

Some members of Congress even refused to go through metal detectors on Tuesday, a concern not just for the immediate safety of the U.S. Capitol building but for the Jan. 20 inauguration, when armed insurrectionists are expected to arrive. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a QAnon supporter and Trump neo-fascist, refused to have her bag inspected after she set off the metal detectors and wore a mask on the House floor that reads, “Molon Labe,” which means “come and take it.” The phrase is popular with gun-obsessed Republicans and is a clear call to violence.

Gizmodo reached out to YouTube about more details on Trump’s suspension from the platform but the company declined to explain anything more on the record.